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If they go after VW, then they need to go after everybody else as well - this has been an industry standard for as long as I can remember. Besides, the article is false - it's not a device. At best it's a piece of the software that detects the standardized drive cycle and adjusts parameters accordingly to meet the requirements. Have you ever wondered why the gas mileage listed for your car is tough/impossible to reach? Same thing...

other than the enjoyable back and forth discussion, the real question is how VW will respond.

I heard some other news chatter that the NTSB has been pushing automakers to be more pro-active in offering incentives to owners to gain increased compliance with recalls. perhaps similar action will happen.

the obvious recall would be for an ECU software update, but then, given that such an update could decrease the mpg, how would VW gain buy-in from car owners?

the Detroit Free press article threw in the per-violation penalty of up to $37500 per vehicle. I could be talked into selling back my TDI for a bit less than that.

They would be in additional violation of the DMCA, for they do this updating via SVM or Fazit over the NET.Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)

It criminalizes production and dissemination of technology, devices, or services intended to circumvent measures (commonly known as digital rights management or DRM) that control access to copyrighted works. It also criminalizes the act of circumventing an access control, whether or not there is actual infringement of copyright itself. In addition, the DMCA heightens the penalties for copyright infringement on the Internet